VK Singh to leave for Saudi Arabia to take stock of situation of stranded Indians

By

IANS

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Updated

:

2 August 2016,

10:50 am

New Delhi: Minister of State for External Affairs General (Retd.) V K Singh will travel to Saudi Arabia today to assess the severity of the food crisis faced by nearly 10,000 Indians stranded in Saudi after being rendered jobless.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday assured the Rajya Sabha that the government would make all arrangements to bring back the Indian workers currently stuck in Saudi Arabia.

She told the members that the Indian Mission in Riyadh has arranged free ration to the workers.

She had earlier said her Cabinet colleague former chief of army staff General (Retd.) V.K. Singh will travel to Saudi Arabia tomorrow to provide aid to the Indians affected due to food crisis.

Swaraj added the government will also take steps to ensure the Indian workers get their salaries.

The issue was raised during the Zero Hour by Anwar Ali Ansari of the Janata Dal (United), Naresh Agarwal of the Samajwadi Party and Rajiv Shukla of the Congress.

Earlier on July 30, Swaraj assured assistance to the Indians, who have lost their jobs in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, saying their situation is being monitored every hour and the government would provide them with every possible support.

In a series of tweets, Swaraj said, “Large number of Indians have lost their jobs in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The employers have not paid wages closed down their factories. As a result our brothers and sisters in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are facing extreme hardship.”

“While situation in Kuwait is manageable, matters are much worse in Saudi Arabia. We have asked the Indian Embassy in Riyadh to provide free ration to the unemployed Indian workers in Saudi Arabia,” she added.